Oliver Barton’s Top 5 YouTubes Of The Week: éS Footwear Dedication

I wish that I had a different motivation for dedicating the toobs this week to éS Footwear, but unfortunately this week it was announced that éS would be taking a creative retreat and would not be operating for the foreseeable future. Leaving in its wake such landmark shoes as the Koston 1 and the Accel, éS was also home to a roll call of legendary skaters over its time, but despite the high performance caliber of its cast, always maintained a strict ethos of fun. Check this 411 commercial for example:

When éS came out (the "e" and the "s" representing the first and last letters of etnies and also etnies Skateboarding), the line up was heaving and included the already legendary Chad Muska who's first shoe must have easily been one of the most anticipated of all time. Here's his part from that first shoe era, Shorty’s Fulfill The Dream:

Ronnie Creager was also in the original éS lineup. Ronnie has been at the front of the pack of technical skateboarding for at least 15 years, even if at times he has chosen to step out of the limelight here and there. This is his part from Triology:

Then there was a kid from Oxford, England who needs no introduction:

Eric Koston personified éS more than anyone. Whilst back noseblunt sliding hubba, nollie heel nosesliding and tre flip noseblunting rails were standout, the trait that set him apart from most of the skaters killing it was his attitude. No locker room fratboy competition here, just good clean fun with a deep bag of dork tricks backed up by more NBDs than you can shake a stick at. If you want to check out a bevy of other éS-ness, check out Scuba Steve's blog es-days.tumblr.com. Have a great weekend and remember that the products you buy directly impact skateboarding. Support the companies that support skateboarding.